Home Hot List Contact Information Bio. Information Personal Interests Guest Book WEB Ring

Stephen & Kimara Tong Homepage

We are one in the bond of love


Heartland Featured Page


Besides smoking, what else can be bad for health?

Propylene Glycol
- is a colourless, viscous, hygroscopic liquid, used in anti-freeze solutions, in hydraulic fluids...

What can PROPELENE GLYCOL do to us?
- The problem is PROPLENE GLYCOL can be absorbed through the skin.

Sodium Lauryl Sulfate (SLS)
- is harsh (caustic) detergent... Also used surfactant...

SLS IN YOUR FACE - RATHER, IN YOUR MOUTH
- Sodium Lauryl Sulfate is great for degreaser, and it's a favourite of the toothpaste manufacturers...

And There's a Lot More to Worry About
- The list of Harmful Ingredients found in our every day products doesn't end with Propylene G lycol and Sodium Lauryl Sulfate...

AND IT'S NOT GETTING ANY BETTER...
- more and more chemical compounds formulated...


Propylene Glycol


Propylene Glycol - is a colourless, viscous, hygroscopic liquid CH3CHOHCH2OH, used in anti-freeze solutions, in hydraulic fluids, and as a solvent. Also called "propanediol".
- from American Heritage Encyclopedia Dictionary.


PROPYLENE GLYCOL is used in:

ANTI-FREEZE
BRAKES AND HYHRAULIC FLUIDS
DE-ICER
PAINTS AND COATINGS
FLOOR WAX
LAUNDRY DETERGENTS
PET FOODS
TOBACCO
COSMETICS
TOOTHPASTES
SHAMPOOS
DEODRANTS
LOTIONS
PROCESSED FOODS
and many more personal care items...


Propylene Glycol also serves as a Humectant a substance that helps retain moisture content, or simply - it prevents thing from drying out. That's why some pet foods are soft and chewy. This, of course, is a good reasons it's in cosmetics and other personal care items. It makes the skin feel moist and soft. And, the products don't dry out. Propylene Glycol is also found in baby wipes and even some processed foods!

Go ahead, Check Your Labels!



How Much of this STUFF is OK?
PROPYLENE GLYCOL: Implicated in contact dermatitis, kidney damage and liver abnormalities; Can inhibit skin cell growth in human tests and can damage cell membranes causing rashes, dry skin and surface damage.
- from Material Safety Data Sheets (MSDS)

A published clinical review showed propylene glycol causes a significant number of reactions and was a primary irritant to the skin even in low levels of concentrations.
- The American Academy of Dermatologist, Inc; Jan'91

ACUTE EFFECTS: May be harmful by inhalation, ingestion or skin absorption. May cause eye irritation, skin irritation, Exposure can cause Gastro-Intestinal disturbance, Nausea, Headache and Vomiting, Central Nervous System depression.
- from Material Safety Data Sheet

Back to Top


WHAT CAN PROPYLENE GLYCOL DO TO US?


In 1938, the FDA grandfathered the use of several of these ingredients as safe for personal care items, with restrictions of course. Based on what? There were no studies on repeated exposure over time.

The problem is PROPLENE GLYCOL can be absorbed through the skin. Studies have shown SYSTEMIC retention (residue through the skin).

NOW THIS OPENS UP A WHOLE NEW BALL GAME!

Has anyone or any company tested the long range side effects from constant use of these products? - We haven't found any.

So these complex chemicals build up our bodies?

If Propylene Glycol keeps things from drying out - how?

If it's absorbed into our bloodstream and into our cells, what does it do?

Does it affect any of the simple, natural biological functions at the cellular level?

You don't need a study to say - it's possible, even likely.

You do need a conclusive study to make the producers stop using these ingredients! Yes, this is beginning to sound like another Tobacco Scandal. But before you get complacent and think the government is going to step in - think again. Look how long it has taken the cigarette pushers to get grilled - 20 years after the Surgeon General's report.

In fairness, the producers of these products are not doing anything illegal. They use Propylene Glycol and other questionable substances, for three reasons...

1) They do the JOB!

2) They're CHEAP!

3) They're ALLOWED

Think About It... Think About It... Think About It...

What would you do if you were the Big Cheese at Propyl & Glycol with corporate profits to fatten? You wouldn't offer to do a study and you wouldn't change anything without being able to justify additional costs to the stock holders.

And if you think Anti-Freeze in your expensive cosmetics and daily-used personal care items is disgusting...
it's just the tip of the iceberg!

Back to Top


Sodium Lauryl Sulfate (SLS)


Spend some time to take a look at personal care products that you use at home... shampoo, toothpaste, shower gel, facial cleanser, etc... You'll discover that most of these products contain Sodium Lauryl Sulfate (SLS) or Sodium Laureth Sulfate (SLES)... and so do hundreds of other personal care products and household cleaning items.

So what is SLS?

Sodium Lauryl Sulfate (SLS) is a harsh (caustic) detergent. Also, used as surfactant, which breaks down the surface tension of water. Industrial uses include :

CONCRETE FLOOR CLEANER
ENGINE DEGREASER
CAR WASH DETERGENTS


What can SLS do to YOUR organic tissue? Plenty?
SLS is a mutagen. It is capable of changing the information in genetic material found in cells. SLS has been used in studies to induce mutations in bacteria.
- Higughi, Araya and Higughi; School of Medicine, Tohuku Univ.; Sendai 980, Japan

SLS is routinely used in clinical studies to irritate skin tissue.

SLS corrodes hair follicle and impairs ability to grow hair

Carcinogenic Nitrates can form when SLS interacts with other nitrogen bearing ingredients

SLS enters and maintains residual levels in the heart, liver, lungs and brain from skin contact. (Shampoo?)

SLS denatures protein, impairs proper structural formation of young eyes - damage permanent.

SLS can damage the immune system; cause separation of skin layers and cause inflammation to skin.

- from Journal of the American College of Toxicology; Vol. 2,
No. 7, 1983


A MEDICAL STUDY THAT HITS HOME
"Detergent penetration into Young and Adults Eyes,
Research to prevent Blindness"

- Keith Green, Ph.D., D.Sc., Medical College Georgia

Dr. Green's study reveals some of the most compelling and alarming evidence indicating that SLS should be avoided (and why you'll find WARNINGS on products containing SLS).

SLS is rapidly taken up and accumulated by eye tissues, and retained for up to 5 days.

SLS uptake is greater in younger mammals (this is probably why toothpaste label single out children under 6 years-and under 2... forget about it!)

SLS denatures proteins of eye tissues - impairing development - permanently.

SLS extends the healing time of the cornea surface to 10days... far beyond the norm of 2 days.

Tissues of young eyes may be more susceptible to alteration by SLS.

SLS (found in nearly ALL toothpaste's, many shampoos and bubble baths) is absorbed through skin contact and is retained for up to 5 days. Our eyes develop most during our first few years, we dowse ourselves and kids with SLS and we have more and more people wearing contacts and glasses! Now we know a good reason!

And it's clear by all those warnings and cautions that "they know it" as well! On the bright side, you could do well! buying stock in one of the Eye Care Superstore chains... the more we use SLS the bigger and richer they may get!

Back to Top


SLS IN YOUR FACE - RATHER, IN YOUR MOUTH


Sodium Lauryl Sulfate is great for degreaser, and it's a favourite of the toothpaste manufacturers, in fact we can find it in EVERY brand we could find! If it can help eat grease off concrete, what's a little left over lunch debris?

These products are nor intended to be swallowed. So, the question is, does any SLS get into your system?

Many medications recommend placing a few drops under the tongue for best absorption... and fastest, usually 30 seconds or less! This is the best place for absorption into the body. Do you think any toothpaste (nicely mixed with saliva) might get under your tongue when brushing? Especially, if you brush for a minute or two? Could SLS be absorbed? Shampooing???

Of course, if SLS is in your body, a study would be needed to prove where it came from and what, if any, role it plays in any diseases or sickness. That's not likely to happen soon, so look around and use some common sense.


WARNING LABELS... THERE'S A GOOD REASON
ON TOOTHPASTE! WHY?

Let's get right to it - OK? By now, you realise little is sacred anymore! Right here before your very eyes is a typical toothpaste label. We went to the grocery store and checked them for ourselves, about 20 popular brands.

ALL of them contained Sodium Lauryl Sulfate (SLS) and some even contained Propylene Glycol as well. (What the heck... Why not?) They also cautioned or warned about children under 6... for good reason

So go on, run to your bathroom and check your toothpaste for a warning label. If you can't find one, it was probably on the box it came in.

LET'S TAKE A LOOK...

SLS of course, but what really raised our eyebrows are the DIRECTIONS. See how much detail there is instructing you how to supervise children under the age of 6. Is supervise a bit much? C'mon, this is toothpaste, not rat poison!

The directions are printed for a reason. This label not only specifies children under 6, but it goes into detail about children under 2 to 6 years of age and those under 2. If you read between the lines... It implies that children under 2 should NOT use this toothpaste. All Warning Labels were very similar.

Then it WARNS you to "KEEP OUT OF THE REACH OF CHILDREN." Hmm... didn't know that. Well, get a load of what's next... IF SWALLOWED... contact a Poison Control Center immediately! Poison, they said it!

The warnings and cautions are printed for a reason. Kids are NOT going to read them, so it's your responsibility to 'supervise" your child's use of toothpaste and other products. Producers can put in "safe" amounts of "poison"; but if disease or abnormalities arise in your child down the road; don't blame (sue) the big corporations - they've warned you!

SO WHEN THE CHEMICAL SCANDAL SURFACES...

...probably within our lifetime-the big boys will have their profits and their butts covered. Your kids can only ask... Why mom, Why dad? Why didn't you read the label?

Well, at least now you know... What are you going to do?

Back to Top


AND THERE'S A LOT MORE TO WORRY ABOUT...


The list of Harmful Ingredients found in our every day products doesn't end with Propylene Glycol and Sodium Lauryl Sulfate. Here are more ingredients found in products we sprinkle all over our bodies, smear under our arms and gargle with... and we do it for or encourage our kids to do the same... every day of every week, month after month, year after year!

TALC is a very fine substance, so fine it can be used as a "dry" lubricant. Talc is chemically similar to asbestos, a known cancer causing substance. Talc is found in many "body and baby" powders, feminine powders and many cosmetics. It's also used as a lubricant on condoms! While it makes your skin "feel" slippery smooth; Talc does so much more!

How does Talc keep babies and your private parts so "fresh"? Presumably by clogging the pores that secrete those necessary fluids. Also, those fine little particles manage to get into the systems. And being similar to asbestos is not comforting, especially when used on babies and genital areas.


Talc's harmful effect on human tissue has been known for quite some time. Long ago, its dry lubricating properties were used as a glove-donning powder (easy to slide on) for surgical gloves. As early as the 1930's, Talc was linked to post-operative granulomatous peritonitis and fibrous adhesions.
- from Candace Sue Kasper, MD; Dr, P.J Chandler

Talc... (on condoms)... may result in fallopian tube fibrosis with resultant infertility. Question raised by Doctor Kasper and Chandler in Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) 3/15/95
- from Nutrition Health Review, Summer 1995 n73 p8(1)

"A possible tie between talcum powder and ovarian cancer, long suspected because of talc's chemical similarity to asbestos, was strongly supported last week when a study found a higher risk of the cancer among women who dusted themselves with talc or used feminine deodorant sprays. The study, published in the American Journal of Epidemiology, found that women who used talcum powder in the genital area had an increased ovarian cancer risk of 60% and women who used feminine deodorant sprays had a 90% increased risk." In 1994, the FDA conducted a scientific workshop on the issue and did not find enough of a causal link to justify even a consumer warning.
- from U.S. News & World Report, March 17, 1997 v122 n10p77(1)

While more studies link talc to ovarian carcinoma, urinary tract disorders - and cancer rates soar-the FDA is waiting for conclusive evidence. But don't worry about the surgeons. You see, Talc is not used in glove-donning powders any more... but is still found in cosmetics, powders and condoms! So while they protect their health, their flow of patients may be protected as well!

ALCOHOL This is mouthwash - not alcohol. But it is. Mouthwash in general has a higher alcohol content than beer, wine and many liquors.


MOUTHWASH DANGER - Mouthwashes with an alcohol contents of 25% or higher have been implicated in mouth, tongue and throat cancers. Alcohol acts as a solvent in the mouth making tissue more vulnerable to carcinogens. Men had a 60% higher risk and women a 90% higher risk of these cancers, compared to those not using the mouth wash.
- from National Cancer Institute, US 4/22/91

About the same time, Warner-Lambert Co. announced it was developing a lower alcohol formula of Listrine, which has (had) an alcohol content of 26.9%. Company CEO stated the lower alcohol formula is "coincidental. It's not directed at any cancer problem." - from Wall Street Journal 4/23/91 pg B1

Coincidental? Not directed at a cancer problem? Go figure! Regarding the different between alcohol content over or under 25%... It's still in the mouth where alcohol acts as a solvent. We already know that substances are quickly and easily absorbed anywhere in the mouth. What could this alcohol be doing in other parts of the body? Perhaps making other tissue more vulnerable to carcinogens? Many forms of alcohol are found in hundreds of products we use every day.


Careful, logic doesn't count - you need a blasted study!

ALUMINIUM is a metal, the third most common element in the environment, processed food, antiperspirants, antacids, cosmetics, paper products, beverage cans, foil and cookware.


World Health Organization conducts study on chemical pollution and the elderly... "There is a suspected link between Alzheimer's disease and the toxicity of aluminium... autopsies have found high concentrations of metal in the brain of people who had suffered from the disease."
- from Public Health Reports, Nov-Dec 1993 v108 n6 p798(2)

"Studies linking aluminium to Alzheimer's disease... 'The evidence is strong enough that the prudent person will eliminate all food and cosmetics sources of aluminium and will use aluminium cooking utensils only if they are coated,' suggest Gary Price Todd, M.D., author of Nutrition, Health and Disease."
- from Natural Health, May-June 1993 v23 n3 p54(2)

Dr Daniel Perl, Director of Neuropathology at Mount Sinai Medical Center in New York, suggest, " ...avoid aerosol antiperspirants. Aluminium in aerosol form may be more readily absorbed into the brain through nasal passages."
- from The University of California, Berkeley Wellness Letter, April 1993 v9 n7 pl(2)

"Aluminium-containing antiperspirant are designed to be absorbed, and studies shows that regular use of these products can raise therisk of Alzheimer's by as much a three-fold. (also) ...municipal water supplies treated with alum (aluminium sulfate)... at least 7 studies show that people drinking water high in alum are more likely to develop Alzheimer's."
- from Natural Health May-June 1993 v23 n3 p54(2)

Alzheimer's disease is now the
4th LEADING CAUSE OF DEATH
among the elderly, behind heart disease, cancer and stroke. A half century ago it was virtually unheard of!

Back to Top


AND IT'S NOT GETTING
ANY BETTER...


1965 TO 1982 OVER
4 MILLION DISTINCT CHEMICAL
COMPOUND FORMULATED

AT LEAST 250,000 NEW
FORMULATIONS CREATED
ANUALLY SINCE THEN

APPROXIMATELY 3,000
CHEMICALS ARE
ADDED TO OUR FOODS

700 HAVE BEEN FOUND
IN DRINKING WATER

400 HAVE BEEN IDENTIFIED
IN HUMAN TISSUE

OVER 500 CAN BE FOUND UNDER
THE KITCHEN SINKS OR IN THE
LAUNDRY ROOMS

OVER 800 NEUROTOXIC
CHEMICAL COMPOUNDS ARE
USED IN THE COSMETIC
AND PERFUME INDUSTRIES

Back to Top


Date Created : 11/23/97. Last Updated : 12/16/97.

This page hosted by Get your own Free Home Page

Home Hot List Say Goodbye!



E-mail: steve_kim@oocities.com

Hits Since 12/02/97.